


Gooey

by Harmonyhhr



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, when love and hate collide
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-07 19:11:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18879463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harmonyhhr/pseuds/Harmonyhhr
Summary: After getting caught up in a rowing team doping scandal, Gendry Waters was nationally disgraced and kicked out of school. To give himself time to figure out what he wants to do with his life, he ends up taking a job working in the stables for the do-gooding and absurdly wealthy Stark family.22 year old Arya Stark is sick of living in the shadow of her perfect family. Known as the wild child of the bunch, her latest transgressions get her sent home for the summer. Much to her dismay the only person around to entertain her is the bull-headed, grumpy stable boy. What could possibly go wrong?





	1. Chapter 1, or the one where Arya almost accidentally kills Gendry

**Author's Note:**

> This fic idea is definitely not mine. It came from a post from bethgreenesgf [here](https://bethgreenesgf.tumblr.com/post/184955683751/arya-all-alone-in-her-familys-mansion-for-the) on Tumblr. Also inspired by the photo set created by gendrybaratheonn [here](https://gendrybaratheonn.tumblr.com/post/184968331418/as-you-wish-mlady-dont-call-me-that)
> 
> I'm not sure where they wanted to go exactly with the idea but I went 2019 Modern AU. Title is from the song 'Gooey' by Glass Animals.

Gendry grumbled as he approached the towering gate blocking the driveway to the house. Sparing a glance backward, he scoffed inwardly. ‘House’ was hardly the word to describe the monstrosity behind him. It had  _ towers  _ for God’s sake. Did the Starks fancy themselves lords of a castle?

Normally the stables were Gendry’s domain, but apparently today he also had to be butler, maid, maintenance man, and errand boy. He’d received the call not an hour earlier from Ned Stark directly, telling him he would need to get the house in order before the arrival of Miss Arya Stark herself. His soft grumbling grew louder as he thought of the Stark’s wild middle child.

It wasn’t that Gendry didn’t like the Stark family – most of them were doing good work in the world. 

Ned Stark was the head of his own international company, which at first glance seemed selfish enough, until you realized he gave away a hefty chunk of his earnings to charity each year.  Sansa was training to be human rights attorney, Robb a well-established doctor. Their cousin Jon ran off to join the American military, a bizarre and scandalous choice at the time, but he appeared to be thriving there. Gendry wasn’t certain Jon was necessarily doing ‘good’ but maybe the Americans brainwashed him into believing he was the way they convinced themselves.

Even nerdy Bran Stark was gaining notoriety through his work with Robb on the improvement of prosthetic limbs. Their research had guaranteed his entrance to any of the top universities in the world, but the damn kid was so smart he didn’t even need extra schooling.

_ When you’ve got that much money it’s easy to worry about the world _ , Gendry thought,  _ instead of only yourself _ .

Then again, Arya Stark had access to that same money but the only thing she was known for was getting into trouble. She seemingly took after her pill-popping mother (though those were only tabloid rumors), Catelyn.

Gendry felt guilty for an instant. Cat Stark had been as charitable as her husband once, until fate hit House Stark hard. Bran was nearly killed by a drunk driver when he was younger, leaving him wheelchair bound for the rest of his life. Then they’d lost the youngest boy, Rickon, to cancer when he was only 6. Now she was a recluse, rumored to abuse several prescription drugs while somehow simultaneously hovering over and ignoring her children and husband.

Even rich folk suffered on occasion, he guessed.

He didn’t know much about Arya, other than her name was often plastered in tabloid rags and on less than savory social media sites. Now she was on her way here for the summer. Mr. Stark let it slip that his daughter’s stay was meant to be punishment for her latest antics, but what those were Gendry didn’t know. He’d tuned Mr. Stark’s rantings out as soon as he heard the list of tasks he would need to complete before the 'little Lady' arrived.

The Starks had a loyal staff but they traveled with the family when they were away from home. Thankfully, the horses stayed here year round so Gendry wouldn’t be required to travel. He’d loved it once but…well, those weren’t memories he needed to dredge up today. There was too much to be done. He was the only one on the property at the moment, which was why he was off to unlock the gates.

The little Lady would never lower herself by using one of the service entrances the way Gendry and the gardener did. He seriously hoped the Starks sent some of their staff to look after the girl, because he certainly wasn’t about to do this every day until she was done being grounded. That could last the entire summer! Or God forbid, even longer.

How was being sent home to a palace meant to be punishment?

It was this question he pondered mindlessly as he fiddled with the gates. He’d only gotten one side fully opened before the grinding of tires sliding on gravel pulled him from his revere. He glanced up just in time to throw himself out of the path of the convertible careening up the drive, landing in a cluster of very thorny bushes.

Bright, feminine laughter mocked him over the roar of the engine as  _ she  _ sped past. 


	2. Chapter 2, or the one where I tell you Gendry has season 2 hair in this fic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the love so far! I will do my damnedest not to let you down.

Arya Stark laughed freely as she zoomed through the gates, uncaring of the man who’d barely gotten out of her way. He was just another face her father hired over the phone anyway, someone who would be here for a year at most before he moved on. Father told her his name but for the life of her she couldn’t remember what it was. Garfield? Gerald? Gargamel? Bah. It wasn’t too concerning though; she’d only have to deal with him when taking out her horse, Nymeria.

Seeing Nymeria was the only perk of being stuck at her family home for the summer, instead of freely wandering the world like she was used to. If her father had just _listened_ to her about what happened but oh no, he was much too busy for her shenanigans this time. He was a good man and a good father but with hundreds of people constantly pulling him in different directions, he didn’t have as much time for her as he used to. She wasn’t the baby of the family but she was often treated as such, with all the coddling that went with it.

She supposed that was partly her own fault. Her brothers and sister (and even cousin Jon) all had their own lives. Arya considered it her duty to explore life as much as possible. There was too much to see, hear, taste, and feel for her to tie herself to school or a job. There was too much to fight for, to save. But it wasn’t her fault her family didn’t understand her. They lived their lives in an expected way and that wasn’t her. It never would be.

Arya hopped out of the car and stood staring up at her childhood home. Enormous and imposing it was, but she’d always felt safe here. It gave off the air that it had weathered many storms throughout the centuries and was surely strong enough to weather many more to come. Not ornate or conventionally beautiful, it was built to withstand time. Taking the stairs two at a time and building up some speed, she reached the iron handle. With a flourishing twist she pushed it inward -

 

-and ran smack into the locked door.

 

She rubbed at the tip of her nose where it had hit the solid wood and scowled. She was expected, Father had told her as much. So why was the door locked? It wasn’t as though she had a key. She was supposed to but why bother, when Sandor was always there to greet her with the door wide open? If Sansa was home, it was usually her bodyguard Brienne peering out from behind the security chain (even though she could very well see who was there through the security cameras). It was comical, a house so grand and expensive being protected by such a measly little chain, but Brienne had insisted.

Looking up, Arya figured on the best course of action. It might take the new stable boy ages to get up here, and she didn’t particularly feel like waiting for him. Twin trellises framed the grand entrance to the home and one passed right by the second story window with the loose pane of glass. It was loose because she always made sure it stayed that way. A girl always needed several options for sneaking in and out of the house.

Glad she chose sneakers to go with her shorts and tank top, Arya stuck one foot in the opening of the trellis and reached up to use another opening as a handhold.  

She was only about six feet off the ground when a voice came from below her. “You’re fucking crazy, you know that? You’ll kill someone driving that way.”

Arya would have apologized to him eventually but his grumpy tone set her feral side on edge. _He_ was the reason she was currently scaling a wall. Now they were even.

She didn’t bother looking at him as she replied, “Considering you’re standing here bothering me I’d say you're fine.” She reached for another rung on the trellis.

A strong, warm hand gripped her ankle tightly. “What in the hell are you doing?”

Arya tried to tug her leg from his grasp but he held firm. “If you’ll get off me, I’m going to get into my house through the window up there, _since someone forgot to unlock the door_.”

A strangled noise escaped his throat. “I was told to expect a young lady, not a wild animal.” He pulled harder on her leg. “Now get down from there before you fall.”

“I’ll only fall because you keep manhandling me.”

“I’m not manhandling you! I just don’t want to explain to your father how his daughter broke her neck trying to scale a damn wall!” He was definitely losing patience.

 

“I’ve done this hundreds of times-”

“Some lady you’ve turned out to be-”

 

“I’m not a lady!” Arya did look at him then, and found a pair of very aggravated blue eyes focused on hers.

 

Oh.

 

He was tall. Judging by the way his shirt outlined the muscles in his shoulders and arms, he was strong too. The contrast between his icy blue eyes and unruly dark hair was...unsettling. She quirked an eyebrow at him and made a decision.

“Fine, I’ll come down.” And without warning she let go of the trellis, waiting for those strong arms to catch her.

She hadn’t been up very high but apparently he wasn’t prepared for her to actually fall. She hit him like a sack of potatoes and they both went down. He was gentlemanly enough to break her fall, leaving her sprawled across his well developed chest.

“That was not ladylike,” he groaned beneath her. “Not ladylike at all.”

Arya scrambled up but remained sitting on him, her knees on either side of his stomach. Peering down at his face, she asked, “What’s your name?”

He coughed once and glanced around before answering, “Maybe we could have this conversation, uh, standing up?”

She pretended to consider this option and then shook her head. “No. You could be dangerous, even though you folded like a cheap suit.” That comment earned her another glare. “I should make sure you’re supposed to be here before letting you up.” She gave him her best impish smile.

Her charms were lost on him though. “Yeah, I’m sure loads of random people hang around just waiting to open gates and happen to have a set of your house keys in their pocket.” He rolled his eyes.

Arya’s smile widened to a grin and she let her hand trail slowly down his side. “Oh, you’ve got the keys do you? I guess I’ll just have to look for myself if you don-”

Her teasing was cut short when he grabbed her forearms and rolled her off to one side so he could flow to his feet like the ground had been set on fire. His expression as he stared at her could only be described as bewildered.

“Gendry,” he said after a full minute. “My name is Gendry.” He dug into his pocket to fish out the keys, gave her one more startled glance, and jogged up the stairs to the door.

As she stood, Arya noted he had a most excellent butt. Maybe this summer wouldn’t be so bad after all


	3. Chapter 3, or the one where everyone is overly dramatic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to thank everyone again for all the love you're giving this fic. It's silly and who knows how far it'll go but I just love these two characters. It's kind of fun imaging what they would be doing in our world. I wanted to have Arya be more bitchy and rich girl spoiled but I can't bring myself to write her that way. I know some others have taken on this prompt as well so I hope someone gives us properly rude Arya :)
> 
> I do want to say there is a mention of sexual assault during Arya's portion of this chapter, while she's talking to Sansa. I don't go into detail but I don't want anyone caught off guard.

Her hair was pink.

It was pink and he had not been expecting that. 

Gendry didn’t know why he found her hair color so enthralling. When he was in school he had been surrounded by both men and woman who wore their hair in every shade imaginable. It never caught his attention before. Maybe it was because they always chose colors that didn’t suit them. Arya’s pink hair matched her gray eyes perfectly, and played up the rosiness of her cheeks. It shouldn’t have looked good with her black cutoffs and gold top but truth be told the second she straddled him he totally lost track of everything except the surprising strength in her slender legs and those stormy eyes full of mischief.

Mentally he slapped himself. That line of thinking wouldn’t get him anywhere good.  _Hormones_ , he thought. _Nothing but plain old chemistry._ _That happens when you haven’t had sex in a while._

It had been a long, long while if he were being completely honest. At first it one hundred percent had not been his choice. His name ended up splashed across the same unsavory media sites as Arya’s often did and he suddenly found himself unwanted. That had worn off fast enough but then the tables turned and he was the one who had to say no. Evidently some women thought drugs and scandal were attractive; his number of admirers doubled but he very quickly recognized it had little to do with him and everything to do with pissing off their parents, or gaining their own fifteen minutes of fame.

He figured the worst of it was over by now but the last six months left him tired. The amount of energy it took to be interested in somebody, even just to sleep with them, was more than he currently had. At least, until now.

“What kind of name is Gendry anyway? Where’s your family from?” The current source of his agitation hovered insistently behind him as he led the way to the kitchen. The energy she radiated was nearly a tangible thing and it only added to how off balance he felt around her. He had a feeling she could be anywhere in this enormous house and he would know it the instant he stepped across the threshold; she practically vibrated.

Gendry shook his head to clear it _(of her damn it all)_. “What are you on about? What’s wrong with my name?” All he wanted to do was check to see what sort of supplies he needed to pick up from the store and he could be free of her for a few hours at least. 

"Your name - it's weird." Arya said it so matter-of-factly he knew she meant no insult but it stung all the same. "I don't know." He replied.

He should have known she wouldn’t be satisfied with his answer. "What do you mean 'you don't know'? Where did your parents get your name? Is it a family name?”

"How can someone so small be such a pain in my ass?" He stopped and looked up at the ceiling as though pleading to a higher power for help. Annoying as it was, at least her flood of questions was getting his mind out of the gutter. "I don't know where we're from. My mum gave me my name and no, I've never asked her why she picked it. My surname is Waters. Does it really matter?"

The hallway was more than big enough for the two of them to walk comfortably side by side. Gendry knew it and he knew Arya did too, so he nearly jumped out of his skin as she brushed against him while continuing on to the kitchen. A current of electricity shot straight from the spot where her breasts pressed against his arm directly to his groin. Had he been a weaker man he would have whimpered, but he had his pride (or so he told himself). It was a close thing though. Too close in more ways than one.

 She spun around and began walking backwards, her ever present cheeky grin a sign that she knew exactly what she had done. "What about your dad?"

Gendry sighed deeply, now following her. "I never knew him. He split before I was born and it makes my mum sad to talk about it. I don't like talking about it much either."

Realization that she was prying too much dawned in her eyes and she turned away so he could no longer see her face. It left Gendry feeling like a heel. He shouldn't have snapped out that last bit, it wasn't as if she could have known.  Being the reason why her smile faltered put a solid rock in the pit of his stomach.

God, what was wrong with him? She was the daughter of his boss and so far out of his league it wasn't funny. Judging by what he'd heard about her, she wasn't the sort of person he would ever want to be with anyway. He put the brakes on, physically as well as in his head, and stopped short. He had to get out of here before he made a fool of himself and started believing there could be something between the two of them. 

* * *

 

 

Arya realized Gendry was no longer right behind her and she turned back to see him standing still, staring at her half-horrified, half-confused.

“What’s wrong?” She asked. She hoped she really hadn’t put her foot in it when she’d asked about his family. The Starks were such a proud, old line she often forgot not everyone else had such a luxury. Father taught her names and family heritage would never show you if someone had a good heart. Too bad half the people surrounding her father didn't feel the same way.

The strange expression on Gendry’s face never wavered as he backed away. “I need to go. Supplies. For you.” It was like he couldn’t string a sentence together anymore. Maybe he was sick?

Arya extended her hand to stop him, even though he was well out of her reach. “I got stuff in town before I came. I knew there wouldn’t be much here.” She hesitated. “I’m sorry if I said the wrong thing. I do that, um, a lot.”

But she was speaking to his back. “Then I’ve got horses to tend to.” He spoke so rapidly she almost didn’t catch what he said as he hurried away. A second later the door slammed and Arya was left alone. She rolled her eyes and walked into the kitchen, kicking aside a stool at the counter so she could sit. Pulling her phone from her pocket, she scrolled down her contacts list until she found her sister.

“What do you know about the new guy working in the stables?” She asked the second Sansa picked up.

“Why hello to you too, Arya. I’m well thank you for asking. How’re you?” Sometimes Arya hated her sister.

When they were kids Sansa had always been the one who loved the decorum lessons their mother had insisted upon. Proper curtsies, knowing which fork to use, what titles to call certain people - Arya hated it all. Even then she knew life was too short to worry about offending the world. It would be offended no matter what.

Why would anyone care about how to fold a napkin in your lap?

Sansa enjoyed every second of it though, and still carried all those lessons with her in to adulthood. It probably served her well as an attorney but forcing family to play the game was over the top.

“Sansa, stop it. This is important.” Arya growled. She didn't know _why_ it was important to find out about this man but she felt an urgency to know everything she could about him.  

"Did something happen? Did he hurt you?" Her sister went from calm to nearly frantic in the blink of an eye. It was Arya's day to act like a jackass. Sansa had come so far since she was assaulted when she was 16, but some things still sent her into a panic. Arya should have known better than to respond so strongly when speaking about a man.

"I'm fine, I'm all right." She hushed her sister. "I didn't mean to scare you. I just...well, Sansa I just can't read him. What do you know about him?"

Sansa huffed into the phone. "I know you only arrived at the house today. You've been around him for what, all of ten minutes?"

"Maybe…"

"Arya Stark, did you interrupt my work just so you could ask me about a guy you have the hots for?" Her words were stern but Arya could hear the laughter in them as well. It made her smile. "No!  It- you, you're leaving me here alone with this guy! He could be a mass murderer or psychopath.”

"Mmmhmmmm." Disbelief radiated through the phone. "I do know a little something; I saw his name in the media a lot for a while. He was one of the guys caught up in the rowing team drugs scandal last year."

"Drugs? For real?" Arya wouldn’t have guessed that for anything.

"It wasn't proven he was actually on drugs. From what I heard he never tested positive and none of the other guys said he did. Everyone on the team was given the boot because it wasn't believable they could work so closely together without knowing what each other was doing."

Arya felt a familiar anger burning deep. "That's not fair!"

Sansa agreed. "My bet is that's why Father hired him. You know how he brings home strays" She paused. "Ooh sister dear, I just looked him up online. He's handsome. You could do worse."

"Shut up, Sansa. I'm not interested in him like that." That’s what Arya was telling herself at least.

Sansa clearly didn’t buy her story. "You don't have to hide it from me. I'm kind of relieved actually."

"Why?" Arya asked.

"You isolate yourself too much. We never see you anymore. This last incident-"

"It wasn't an _incident_ , Sansa. I was trying to help free those animals." "And there are ways to do that, Arya, but you can't break into a secure facility and set them loose!"

"I was going to take them to a sanctuary." Arya spat back. Sansa wasn't having it though. "How? Stuff a bunch of monkeys and rats in a car and just drive away?"

"I had help!"

"Who, that idiot Lommy? Did you drag Hot Pie along or have you let him alone to do his apprenticeship?" Sansa’s tone was both reasonable and impatient. She learned it from their mother and it drove Arya insane.

"I didn't call looking for a lecture or an argument, Sansa."

"Well too bad because you got one. You’re scaring the hell out of the entire family. Father might not be able to get you out of trouble next time. This wasn't like your other stunts - this was prison, Arya. Prison!"

The old familiar hurt of not belonging crept in on Arya as her sister talked.“You used to be in my side.”

“I still am. I agree with what you're trying to do but Arya, my job is to protect people. I can't provide for everyone directly but I can try to make their lives better. I can't be a crusader for all worthy causes. Maybe if you went back to school or joined a real activist group you could ma-“

“I have to go. Thanks for the lovely chat. Say hi to Theon for me.”

Arya hung up and flung the phone down on the counter. Forget Gendry, forget Sansa and Father and everyone else. If they wanted her to disappear for the summer then that’s what she would do.   

**Author's Note:**

> Just a few disclaimers:  
> I'm from the States but to me these characters are British, so you'll have to excuse the very American way they're going to talk. I'll try my best to not make it too cringe-worthy.   
> I have a fairly good idea how this fic will take shape (I hope) but it may take time to update because I'll need to do research on all the stuff I have no idea how to write. The chapters will get longer as the story proceeds. 
> 
> I have never written fics for such a big fandom before. It's a little intimidating! This prompt was eating at me though, so I decided to take a stab at it. No matter how the show or books end, Gendrya will always be my OTP. Bring on the fics!


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